ali south

Unfortunately due to the balance of family requirements my mum and step father are unable to apply for residency in Australia. We have seen a migration agent and there is just no hope. So, they come and go. They were recently here with my sister and I in Sydney for 18 months but have returned to the UK as per visa requirements. They would like to return again and reapply for another holiday visa. They have been back in the UK for 4 months.
Do you know if there is a rule about how long you are out of Australia before you can reapply to return, especially in light that this would be the third or fourth time doing this?
Thanks for your help.

verystormy

That would be fine. If they intend to do more trips, they may want to look at the 600 visa which allows multiple stays for extended periods.

NickyC

The 600 visa allows parents to stay for up to a year in any 18 month period. So I'd have said that's the effective limit. After a one year stay, they need to be absent for a minimum of six months. If your parents have already been here for 18 months they've already overshot the recommended period so it might be wiser them to wait at least six months before re-applying and then only staying for six months.

You can't 'live' in Australia on a visitor's visa so unlimited back-to-back visits are not possible.

Alfresco

Hi, I have moved this to the immi forum.

ali south

Thanks NickyC, they had a different visa last time that no longer exists. They were permitted to stay for that time. They have never overstayed a visa. We would not risk that ruining future visits.

ali south

Thanks Alfresco

BritInParis

What visa subclass did they hold to allow them to stay for 18 months?

rammygirl

Yes I am curious about this too. I thought the maximum time in Aus as a visitor has always been 12 months. I guess you could leave and come back after 12 months. So to stay longer you would need to leave Australia at some point.

ali south

I am not sure but it does not exist anymore. It may have been the The Subclass 676 Tourist visa. It was more than 12 months because of the re-entry element to it.

ali south

They did have to leave the country and re-enter during this time.

rammygirl

That makes sense if they left and returned during the 18 months, just that it seemed they had stayed for the full 18 months continuously from your earlier post.